Daily Dose: 5/10/17 The nation’s capital has a lot going on

Daily Dose: 5/10/17 The nation’s capital has a lot going on

Wednesday is the biggest day in Washington, D.C., sports in a long time. The Capitals are in a Game 7. The Wizards have a very important Game 5. And the Nationals are playing the Baltimore Orioles. I’ll be in my bunker, chewing my nails off.

So, let me try to explain this. President Donald Trump fired James Comey, who was the head of the FBI. Comey was the man responsible for investigating whether Trump was involved with Russia in an improper way. The man who suggested it was Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, who had to recuse himself from the investigation because he himself was caught meeting with Russian officials. Meaning, we might never find out what’s true in this situation because Trump can appoint someone who might just drop the investigation altogether. Total debacle.

Perhaps as important to our nation’s welfare, Census Bureau director John Thompson resigned Tuesday. If you don’t know, that agency does a whole lot of things beyond just count how many people are in the country. It takes surveys on public health, and the data it collects is used by all sorts of other groups for various reasons. And in some places in America, it’s actually a dangerous job to knock on people’s doors and ask them, for example, who lives there. With a funding problem looming for the agency, dude just decided to leave. Very ominous.

There are people in this world without whom I probably wouldn’t have a job. There was a time when being a black person meant that your avenues to the world of journalism and, in general, public discourse were so limited that you had to be considered a genius to get a seat at the table. But the trailblazers who made a point of showcasing our talent, our skill and our mettle are as important as the stars. One of those people was Eddie Williams, president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies for 32 years. He died Monday at 84.

More bad news on the death front. You might not know Christopher Boykin by his government name. But Big Black, who came to fame via the MTV show Rob & Big, was a complete cult hero. For many it was the original completely stupid reality show. For one dumb young man looking to become a media personality, it was a total inspiration. Big Black spun off his own clothing line that did relatively well considering where it started, but his tagline, “Do work, son,” will live on. I loved this dude so much. He was 45.

Shout out to LaVar Ball. He’s managed to pull off this carnival barker act for some time, and still, somehow, it’s definitely working. His media parade won’t end anytime soon because, well, his son is gonna be quite a good NBA player, hopefully. But his claims are getting more outlandish by the day. Which is part of the reason I love him, to be honest. He did his TV circuit yesterday and managed to mention Michael Jordan’s name in a derogatory way, which always sets off old heads. LaVar is already a legend in his own mind, and mine too, ha.

Free Food

Coffee Break: We love Larry Wilmore. He’s been responsible and a part of some of the most important shows of our time, so when he walks in the room, he gets respect. Now, he’s got a new podcast with The Ringer and it’s called Black On the Air, which is pretty tremendous.

Snack Time: A white guy took an AncestryDNA test and figured out that he was 18 percent African, according to the results. He was then made fun of by his co-workers. That white guy is a police officer. And now he’s suing everyone.